Is That a Useful Thought?

Show Notes

Recently, my coach said to me, “Is that a useful thought?” It makes us stop and think, doesn’t it? So today, that’s our topic for the episode: “Is that a useful thought?” Reframing, changing the way we think, and getting rid of a little bit more of that negative self-talk, all those kinds of things.

Change Your Thoughts and Mindset

We’ve all seen sports teams that shouldn’t have lost, and they lose. The same people who shouldn’t have won, and they won. It’s all have to do with thoughts and mindset, the way we think about things. So, is that a useful thought? Those little things that sneak into the back of your mind, and you say, “I’ve done enough. It should be okay. Yeah, it’s all right, at least it didn’t…” That kind of thing. Is it better to refine those thoughts and think, “I’ve worked as hard as I can. Is it a positive thought?” There are many different ways to think about it. How can you reframe your thoughts and just stop and think, “Is that a useful thought?”

Think Useful Thoughts

We’ve seen elections where people really shouldn’t be in Parliament, and we’ve seen others who really should. Quite often, it’s because they haven’t run the whole race. They’ve gotten three-quarters of the way, taken it for granted, and thought, “I’m a winner. I’m good.” Being a winner is amazing, as long as you don’t stop halfway through the race. When we’re thinking of useful thoughts, we need to make sure that we go right to the very end of whatever we’re accomplishing.

And we will accomplish so much more. I guess that’s the tortoise and the hare, isn’t it? The hare thought they had won by a mile, stopped, had a coffee, did whatever. Meanwhile, the tortoise kept plodding on, one step at a time. Often, that’s what we need to do. We need to make sure that we’re having those useful thoughts all the way to the end.

And we are continually building on those foundations and making sure we don’t think, “I’ve done my coaching training. I don’t need to do any more. I’m good.” What can help you more importantly? Will it help your clients? So, stopping and thinking about useful thoughts can be a very good use of your time.

The Three Wins Rule

One of the books I’ve been listening to recently is called The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers’ Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success. I’ve mentioned it on the podcast before. It’s by Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan, and they talk about three wins. When you’re having a bad day and it’s not going the way you thought, if you stop and think about it, what were the three wins that you had today? Sometimes, they can be as small as getting out of bed, having a roof over your head. Other times, you might realise there was only one thing that wasn’t so good in the day, and the rest were amazing.

Aim for No’s

Another book to consider for reframing is Go for No by Richard Fenton and Andrea Waltz. They talk about going for as many “no’s” as possible because it’s a numbers game. If you get ten no’s, chances are you’ll get one yes. The more no’s you get, the more chances you have of getting a yes.

Also, when you aim for no’s, you become less attached to the outcome. You end up giving your best shot, asking those hard questions, and pushing a little more in a consultation. Of course, always ensuring it’s for the client’s benefit, not just for you. It gives you a different mindset, doesn’t it? It allows you to push and ask hard questions when needed. Sometimes, that’s what people really want. When they feel like they’re just treading water in life or business, they need someone to ask them the hard questions.

Links

The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers’ Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success
Go for No! Yes is the Destination, No is How You Get There

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